The Televerse #220- Project Greenlight Season 4 with Caroline Siede

It’s another long podcast this week, with Caroline Siede of The A.V. Club and Debating Doctor Who returning to help Kate break down a comedy-heavy week in TV. We kick things off with said comedies and some reality talk, including looks at the continuation of Mr. Show, Netflix’s With Bob and David, the pilot of Project Runway Junior, a theatre-inspired Nathan For You, and much more. Next up are the dramas, including the new Amazon pilot Good Girls Revolt and Grey’s Anatomy, and we round out the week with the genre offerings, including a preview of The Man in the High Castle, a look at the pilot of Into the Badlands, and lots of superhero TV talk. Then in lieu of the DVD Shelf, we dive in with a season spotlight on the recent revival of Project Greenlight, and determine whether we’re #TeamEffie or #TeamJason.

Season Spotlight: Project Greenlight Season 4 with Caroline Seide (2:08:32)

Our Week in Comedy and RealityWith Bob and David pilot (7:16)Project Runway Junior pilot (15:24)SNL (19:29)Fresh Off the Boat (24:33)Drunk History (26:34)Adventure Time (29:25)Jane the Virgin (33:40)black-ish (45:35)Nathan For You (48:39)Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (56:32)

Asked if we were Team Jason or Team Effie— well I would be Team Neither as I found them both incredibly irritating to watch. Jason was pretentious, acted like a child and didn’t even seem to appreciate this amazing opportunity he was given. And Effie seemed to go in with a chip on her shoulder, an agenda to push, and was just rude at times—even if some of her ideas were right. However, I don’t understand the negativity towards Matt Damon’s comment—she basically wanted him to hire the director solely based on race which is absurd it shouldn’t even be a factor, it should be whoever is the best director for the job (which obviously wasn’t Jason, but that’s beside the point)—you can’t have a contest and then suddenly change the rules to be “not white” as the requirement to win. And later she was also pushing this “diversity” agenda with the casting—just hire who you think is best for the job, it shouldn’t matter their sex or race, but to force one way or the other based on race or sex is discrimination, even if doing it in the name of being more diverse.

Kyle, the issue with Damon’s “comments” speaks to a larger problem in the mindset of many in the film industry that don’t think there is an issue of race or gender, because they are wrapped up in their own bubble of ignorance. When someone says that the best skilled director should win but thinks that race or gender doesn’t enter into it. I’m sorry, but I call BS on that.

Who’s the one judging who is the best skilled?
A panel of mostly white male executives
Whose art do you think is going to mostly speak to them?
Perhaps that of a white male director

The difference between a white male director and a director of a different race or gender isn’t that one is more clearly talented than the other; it’s opportunity. Based on the script they were working on, Effie was strongly suggesting that they consider some of the more diverse directors, NOT just for the sake of diversity, but because those directors may be more sensitive to handling the material which featured clichéd characters of race and gender (the script that was considered by all to have poorly handled stereotypes). They wouldn’t have to “change” the rules, if they were considering some directors based on their race or gender. To think that a person’s race, gender, or whatever, doesn’t influence the end result of who should win the contest, well that is what I think is absurd! They are not considering them solely because they are non-white or non-male, but because they may bring something different to the project rather than the same old thing we see all the time. What was Jason’s unique talent, making a short with a pleasing visually aesthetic? Was his short the funniest? Was it the best directed? What are the factors that define these things? It’s not an exact science, so to say that Jason is better skilled as a director than the other contestants and should have won solely on that is dumb to me.

Now, I understand, Kyle, you were not a fan of Effie’s pushing the “diversity” agenda but I thought it was great. She took Matt Damon’s idiotic comment of “And when we’re talking about diversity, you do it in the casting of the film, not in the casting of the show.” And went ahead and cast the show with a diverse crew anyway. She hired a crew of people who were all suited for their positions –there should be no doubt about that–the only difference is that she was offering the opportunity to diverse applicants. That perspective you have where you see it as denying a white male person a job, should give you an idea of how Effie felt working in a film industry where opportunities were denied to her because of her gender and/or race. Maybe now you can understand why she might have a chip on her shoulder.